Somewhere in-between the tropical lounges of 1930s Los Angeles and the honky tonk beer joints of rural 1950s California, you'll find Poi Rogers.
Hailing from Santa Cruz, CA, the duo performs original and vintage American roots music, with Gerard Egan doubling on acoustic guitar and triple neck steel and Carolyn Sills on standup bass, their timeless harmonies anchoring the show.
Carolyn and Gerard have been nominated for many national awards over the last few years with their other group, The Carolyn Sills Combo, including winning the 2018 and 2024 Ameripolitan Award for Western Swing Group, Carolyn being named the Academy of Western Artists' Western Swing Female Vocalist of 2020 and the couple both being inducted into the Sacramento Western Swing Hall of Fame. Carolyn’s reputation for creative and clever storytelling got her writing published in the 'Lyrics as Poetry' chronicles.
What began as a fun way for the couple to explore the vintage musical styles they love turned into an in-demand touring act, with Poi Rogers ‘accidentally’ playing almost 200 shows since 2023. Their debut album, Twilight Blues, was dreamt up over the course of numerous dog walks throughout the duo’s sleepy seaside town in California; the collection of eight songs are both cinematic snapshots from the couples’ life together and witty odes to their antiquated passions.
PRESS:
“… last week I spent Thursday night at The Side Door watching the duet Poi Rogers from Santa Cruz. This talented couple provided a sundown infused with their rare mix of cowboy campfire rhythms and blazing tiki bar tenderness. The audience absolutely loved it.” - Scott Thomas Anderson, Sacramento News & Review
“Carolyn Sills holds the low end steady and unfazed, and beautifully unhurried - like someone who’s played these tunes in a dream before. Gerard Egan shifts between six-string and steel with a tone that lingers more than it leads. They’re a married duo, and you can hear it -they leave space in the arrangements, never crowding each other. And in that space, you can tell: this isn’t performance. It’s presence.” - Meghan ‘Mae’ McCoy, Western Swing Society
“Bassist Carolyn Sills and her guitarist husband, Gerard Egan - Santa Cruz's Les Paul and Mary Ford - crank out good stories, catchy love songs and creative chord progressions that will take listeners back to vibes of the post-World-War-II era. Carolyn is the real deal of throwback country music.” - Good Times Magazine
“Sills' songs, written and produced with Gerard Egan, are an homage to jukebox Americana— tasty twang reminiscent of Merle Travis and Patsy Cline." - Monterey County NOW
Debut album, TWILIGHT BLUES, out June 2025
Twilight Blues Track Info:
Don’t Steal My Covers - The first original ditty written by the duo, with lyrics inspired by their dog, Cowboy, at bedtime.
Twilight Blues - A 1939 steel guitar instrumental by Dick McIntire, with original lyrics using Mary Ford inspired harmonies, about that hour in the day when you wish you had gotten more done
Tuesday In Las Cruces - A true story about a Valentine’s Day the duo spent in Las Cruces.
Why Oh Why Have I Not Been To Hawaii - The first Hawaiian steel guitar tune written by the duo when they first came up with the Poi Rogers concept ... ‘but we haven’t even been to Hawaii together?’
The Dollars Medley - An original medley of Ennio Morricone themes from Sergio Leone’s ‘Dollars Trilogy’ (1964-1966), arranged by two ravenous fans of Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti western films. That’s Gerard Egan channeling Alessandro Alessandroni with his whistling, plus Cowboy and Zinger on choreographed dog barks.
You’re All That I Need - A loving rework of Tennessee Ernie Ford and Kay Starr’s ‘I’ll Never Be Free’ from 1950 with original Poi Rogers lyrics, so the duo could feel genuine singing them as a happily married couple. Gerard Egan heroically takes on the role of both Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant to capture the vintage mood of the original recording.
Can’t Get A Long Little Doggie - An original song and lyrics in the upbeat style of Merle Travis, borrowing Daffy Duck’s 1941 Looney Toon of the same name. Another true story from the duo about the troubles of finding a dog friendly rental in California, featuring Cowboy the dog and his musical collar.
Moon Over Montana - An original arrangement of Jimmy Wakely’s 1946 cowboy tune from the movie of the same name, featuring Gerard Egan’s whistling.
AWARDS:
2024 and 2018 Ameripolitan Award Winners, Western Swing Group (for The Carolyn Sills Combo)
2023 Ameripolitan Award Nominee, Western Swing Female (also nominated 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019)
2021 Academy of Western Artists’ Western Swing Female Vocalist of the Year
2019 Inductees to The Sacremento Western Swing Hall of Fame
Visit the homepage for 2025 tour dates
CONTACT:
General Contact/Booking:
poirogersmusic@gmail.com
Radio:
Angela Backstrom / angelabackstrompromo@gmail.com
Marketing:
Blair Clark - blair@brooklynbasementrecords.com
Susan Hamilton - susan@brooklynbasement.co